Improvement in seed-planters



R. B. GROUND.

' fiornrrlanter.

Patented June 29, 1858.

v No. -20.109.

N. PETERS. PH

UNITED STATES v PATENT Fries.

R. B. GROUND, OF MARINE TOWVN, ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEM ENT IN SEED-PLANTERS.

Specification formingpart of Letters Patent No. 20,705 dated June 29, 1858.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, RICHARD B. GROUND, of Marine Town, in the county of Madison and State of Illinois, have invented anew and improved Corn-Planter; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact descrip tion thereof, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this speci fication.

Figures 1, 2. and 3 are top views of my improved corn-planter; and Figs. 4, 5, and 6 are side views of the same, representing the respective parts thereof in different positions. Fig. 7 is a section in the line z z of Fig. 1.

Theframe-work ot'myimproved corn-planter consists of three individual frames, whose side beams, ma 0,are all combined with and freely play upon the journals of a single shaft, q, substantially as represented in the accompanying drawings. The after ends of the side beams m m of the said frames are secured to each other by means of cross-bars a a, which are combined with said beams in anysuitable manner. Near the extremities of the said crossbars a a the short beams 22 o are framed into the same, and serve the purpose of forming thejournal-bearings for the inner ends of the short rollers 20 10, while the outermost journals of said rollers are received into apertures in the side beams on m. The chair a, for the operator of the planter to sit in, is mounted on the central portions of the cross-bars a a in any suitable manner.

The side beams 00 of the innermost portion of the frame-work of my improved planter are combined with each other by means of the broad and strong cross-beam h, which is securely framed into the central portions of said side beams. The side beams n a of the intermediate frame of said planter play freely between the side beams m m and 0 0, and the forward ends of the beams a a project a short distance forward of the shaft q, and are connected to each other by means of the crossbar 1'. The guiding and draft tongue sis firmly secured to the cross-bar r, and to the main shaft g of the planter.

The grain-boxes t t, the channeling-plows y y, and the apparatus tordepositing the seeds or kernels in the soil are all combined with the sides of the innermost frame of the planterin the manner represented in the drawings. The said graiirboxes are firmly secured to the innemsides of the standards t t,which rise from the extremities of the cross-beam h, and the kernels of corn are discharged from said boxes in the following manner, viz: Each grain-box has an aperture, :0, formed in the front portion of its bottom, and a brush,j, is placed a short distance above said aperture. A sliding bar, j, which works freely in apertures in the sides of each grain-box, passes over the aperturein the bottom of the same, and is pressed upon lightly by the descending brush 3" in said box. Each of the sliding barsj has an aperture formed in it,whose size corresponds with that of the apertures in the bottom of the grain-boxes, so that when the said bars are drawn inward they will each receive a plantingcharge of corn in their respective apertures, and when the said bars are thrust forward the said charges of corn will be discharged into the apertures in the bottoms of the grain-boxes, and thence will pass into the inclined spouts 00 m, which will conduct the same into the plantingreceptacles, formed by combining the side plates, 0 c, and the pivoted plate a with the after end of each channeling-plow 3 as shown in Fig. 7.

The perforated sliding barsjj and the pivoted rear sides, a a, of the planting-receptacles are operated in the following manner, viz: The horizontal shaft f oscillates freely in journal-boxes secured to the upper edges of the side beams 0 0 of theinnermost section of the planter-frame, and a hand-lever, d, rises froin the said shaft immediately in front of the operators chair a. Near each end of the shaft fa vertical lever, i, is combined therewith, which levers rise above said shaft high enough to be jointed to the sliding barsjj by means of the links 7c 7c, and the said levers descend below said shaft far enough to be jointed to the upper ends of the pivoted platesa a,which form the rear sides of the planting-receptacles below each grain-box. By drawing back the upper end of the lever d a movement will be imparted to the shaft], which will cause the upper ends of its levers l l to draw inward the sliding barsjj, to receive charges of corn in their respective apertures, and simultaneously with said movement the lower ends of said levers will vibrate the pivoted plates a a, and thereby open the planting-receptacles in front of the same for the discharge of the kernels of corn which were deposited therein by the preceding outward movement of said sliding bars, I and the moment that the said levers Z l cease to operate upon the pivoted plates a a the springs b b, which are combined with said plates, throw them back again to the closed position represented in Fig. 7 and by so doing the said springs also vibrate the shattf and throw outward the sliding barsjj to the position shown also in Fig. 7. The necessary oscillating movements of the shaftf may be imparted thereto by the directing-operator while seated in the chair a; or the said movements may be produced automatically by suitable mechanism.

When my improved planter is operated in very soft and mellow ground and it is not desirable that the seeds should be planted very deep in the soil, only the weight of theinnermost sectional frame, which is combined with the side beams 0 0, is allowed to bear upon the channeling-plows 3 3 When it is desirable that a little greater weight should be brought to bear upon the channeling-plows, the cranks p 9, whose principal shanks pass through vertical apertures in the side beams 71 n, and are headed below the same, are turned inward, as shown in Fig. 2, which brings theweight of the said beams a n to bear upon the said channelin g-plows; and when it is desirable that a still greater degree of weight should bear upon the said channeling-plows of the planter one of the cranks should be turned outward and passed under one of the side beams m, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, which ill cause the entire weight of the side beams m m, the rollers 10 w, the side beams n n, and in fact every portion of threefold frame-work of the planter, to bear upon the said channeling-plows.

By means of the standard a, which rises from the central portion of the front cross-bar, a, of the side beams m m, the hand-lever b, which is jointed to the said standard, and whose short end is connected to the rearward projectioni. 0., from the cross-beam h of the side beams 0 othe operator can at pleasure elevate the channeling-plows y 3 above the surface of the ground.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

The arrangement of the respective parts of the planting apparatus with the adjustable threefold frame-work of my improved cornplanter, substantially in the manner and for the purpose herein set forth.

The above specification of my improvement in seed-planters signed and witnessed this 21st day of April, 1858.

1%. B. GROUND.

\Vi t nesses OnAs. WIGGINS, J. J. Evans. 

